


all of the while, it was you

by watchmyback



Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Coffee Shops, F/M, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-08-07
Updated: 2014-08-07
Packaged: 2018-02-12 04:01:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,224
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2094900
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/watchmyback/pseuds/watchmyback
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Naruto resigned himself to the fact that he was going to mess that name up horribly when it came time to write it on a coffee cup."</p>
            </blockquote>





	all of the while, it was you

**Author's Note:**

> I am an absolute sucker for coffee shop aus and this is the result. why. why is the thought of ninjas making each other frappuccinos so irresistible.

Sakura was happy.  After all, today was Tuesday.  

The gentle breeze through Kohona slid easily through her pink ponytail, and the steady bouncing of her bike tires on the cobblestone felt soothing.  A soft whirl from the chains of her bike made her slow her pace.  Luckily, Senju was right around the corner.  With a content sigh, she was able to coast all the way to the bike rack.  After locking up her jade bike (a birthday gift from her parents), she scrutinized her reflection in the cafe window.

Her face was flushed and appeared shiny from a light sheen of sweat.  Her hair, though tied back, was still messy from the wind.  Full of nervous jitters, she whipped the thin band out of her hair, letting it cascade down just past her shoulders.  She warily eyed her forehead, arguably still just a teeny bit too large.

But really, it didn’t matter.  It was Tuesday...and there was a good chance she’d see a certain customer at 7:15 sharp.  

She familiarly slid her key into the lock and pushed the heavy oak door open.  The tinkling bell above the door announced her entrance to the empty shop.  Softly singing to herself, she threw her satchel behind the bar.   Sakura'd worked at the Senju coffee shop since junior year and knew the morning routine like the back of her hand.  It was soothing, really: familiar aromas engulfed her as she briefly checked the inventory.  Her singing grew louder as she absentmindedly turned back to clear off the couches in the cozy seating area.  

However, her melody was suddenly brought to a screeching halt.  

"KAMI, YOU-...YOU IDIOT!" Perched on the suede red couch (Sakura's favorite) was Naruto Uzumaki, scratching the back of his neck sheepishly.  Seething, Sakura yanked him off her couch by his catastrophically messy apron.  His gulp was so audible that it might’ve been funny if she wasn't ready to knock him into next week.  "What the hell are you doing here?" she demanded, releasing his apron and holding back a smirk as he stumbled backwards.  

Naruto bit back the inevitable " _well, you see, I work here_ ," in some shallow semblance of self-preservation.  Honestly, he knew he should've let Sakura know he was there when she opened the door, but...well.  He liked her singing.  Nonetheless, after working at Senju with her for about a month, Naruto knew confessing this aloud could only make things worse.  

"Uh, I um, uh!" Sakura rolled her eyes at his ineptitude, heading off to the back room in a huff.  His shoulders slumped with total defeat and a slight tinge of relief.  When Sakura emerged, she'd tied her hair up in a messy bun and slipped on her (spotless) apron.  She eyed his with distaste.  

"I'm still waiting," she said conversationally, like she hadn't sliced him into pieces with her glare.  “Today’s not your shift.”  His messy blond mop shook as Naruto willed himself to snap out of it.  

"Um.  Extra shifts. I'm picking them up, that is.  What I mean-" Sakura held up a pale hand to silence him.  

"I got it," she said softly, and Naruto couldn't help but notice the fatigue in her words.  She sighed heavily; the lighthearted singing Sakura who'd stumbled into the shop moments ago was nowhere to be found.  

"I can cover for you, if ya want," he found himself bumbling before he'd given the suggestion an ounce of thought.  

"No!" she blurted out immediately.  He blinked, wide blue eyes spelling out his shock at her insistence.  "Oh, kami, I'm sorry.  That was sweet, I just-" _reason reason quick what's a reason_ "-need the money for med school, that's all." There.  It wasn't a lie, but it wasn't quite why she'd skipped out of bed at four fifteen this morning.  Habitually, her eyes flicked to the clock.  Five o’clock.  There was still plenty of time.  She turned away from Naruto's softening expression to get to work sweeping up.  

"Med school, huh?" he was muttering behind her.  Sakura decided he hadn't said it loud enough to justify a proper answer.  

"Go turn on the coffee pot, okay?  And put the pastries in the oven," she commanded in what she hoped came off as a warm tone.  It must have done the trick: Naruto spared her a goofy grin before haphazardly jumping over the counter.  

Since Naruto had been hired, Sakura had spent their first month as co-workers perfecting the Kami Give Me Strength sigh.  It was nice, because she got to showcase it just about every five minutes when they were on the job together.  

She knew Naruto wasn't necessarily a bad guy.  But he'd practically been handed the job; after all, his godfather seemed to be having some sort of fling with Tsunade (Sakura's boss and the coffee shop's owner).  Tsunade wasn't about to fire him, so it didn't really matter how ridiculous Naruto was: he'd still keep the job.  And Naruto was an expert in all brands of ridiculousness.  

During the first week or so after he'd been hired, Sakura had noticed they never seemed to have much whipped cream in stock.  With endless orders of frappuccinos to fill, it was an essential.  It was shocking how worked up people could get over the lack of whipped cream in a latte, but Sakura understood their pain.  She was depriving her customers of those first cool spoonfuls of cream and damn it, tomorrow she was going to make enough whipped cream to feed an army.  But no matter how many extra servings she whipped up, she always seemed to run out midway through the morning rush.  

Weeks passed before she walked in on Naruto with a cream mustache.  Needless to say, it was an encounter they'd both rather forget.  

They hadn't worked too many shifts together after that.  Sakura would've thanked the fates, but she suspected it had more to do with Tsunade than cosmic powers.  The seating area cleaned to her liking, she retired to the bar to wait for the oven timer to ring.  Predictably, Naruto slid out of the kitchen to join her the moment she settled in.  

“So...you wanna be a doctor?” he probed, leaning entirely too close to her.  She carelessly flicked his forehead, forcing him back an inch or so.  

“Yup,” she responded shortly.  But, if there was anything to be said about Naruto Uzumaki, it was that he wasn’t one to give up easily.  

“Well, what kinda doctor?” The tall blond swayed back and forth on his tiptoes.  Sakura sent him a tired glance.  

“I’m not sure.”  She was tempted to leave it at that, but the topic was one she’d been thinking about more and more lately.  The next sentence came out softly.  “But I’d like to be a surgeon.”  Naruto wore the same shocked expression nearly everyone else did when she confessed her ambition.  She brushed a stray hair out of her eyes, suddenly nervous.  It was just Naruto.  Did it really matter what he thought abou-

“Damn.  Well, I think you’d make a brilliant surgeon, Sakura-chan.”  Assuming he was teasing her, she was ready to snap at him until she met his eyes.  They met hers steadily.  All of Naruto’s trademark teasing had left them.  Still feeling vaguely self-conscious, she brushed him off with a roll of her eyes.

“You barely know anything about me,” she accused.  Naruto’s grin only widened.

“What can I say, I call ’em like I see ’em.”  The annoyingly loud tone of voice was back, but Sakura decided to let it slide just this once.  She just barely quirked up the corners of her mouth before heading back to the kitchen.  After popping the earlier prepared danishes into the oven, she returned with a rag to wipe off the barista stations, giving her nervous energy an outlet.  

Naruto provided enough background noise on his own; though Sakura barely contributed to the conversation, he’d bear the weight of small talk for hours.  Even Sakura, who was by no means a stranger to the art of conversation, was forced to be vaguely impressed.  Methodically, she continued to make the bar spotless, occasionally heading back to the kitchen to check on the pastries.  Just after Naruto had slid the last of the cinnamon twists behind the glass display, the bell announced the day’s first customer.  

“I changed the ‘closed’ sign for you, forehead.  You sure are sleeping on the job today, huh?” Ino brushed her long bangs out of her eyes just for them to fall back into her field of vision.  Sakura let out a breath she didn’t know she was holding: after all, it was still too early for him to stop by.  Her eyes darted to the clock before she set about making Ino’s usual order.  

“It literally _just_ turned five thirty, Ino-pig,” she whined.  Though Sakura was turned the opposite way, Ino could practically sense the implied tongue sticking out at her.  Naruto grinned, throwing a towel over his shoulder before mischievously darting back to the kitchen.  

Ino familiarly perched herself atop a stool by the counter, conspiratorially leaning over it as Sakura prepared her lavender tea.  

“So, is that the whipped cream boy?  He’s kinda hot.”  Ino waggled her eyebrows at Sakura suggestively.

“THANKS!” A boisterous voice exploded from the kitchen.  Sakura slowly banged her head against the top of her blender, abandoning Ino’s tea.  

“No problem, blondie!” Ino shouted at the kitchen door.  A muffled giggle reached the two girls at the counter.  

“Maybe I just won’t give you your tea today.  You’ve done nothing to deserve this,” Sakura intoned at her best friend, completely deadpan.  She let it sit for a moment or two, letting it cool.  But Ino shot her the most intense puppy dog stare she could conjure up, and Sakura rolled her eyes before sliding her the cardboard cup.  

“Yeah, yeah, you’re a saint forehead,” she sighed, greedily cradling the green and red cup.  Like Sakura, her eyes found themselves once more on the face of the clock.  With a reluctant sigh, she slid off her stool.  “Okay, I guess I’ll see you later...so long, nerd.”

“Sell a big bouquet in my honor,” Sakura called, sickly sweet.  Ino teasingly stuck out her tongue before flapping her hand in farewell.  The oak door fell shut with a thud and all that was left in her stead was the sharp scent of a million different flowers.  

The morning rush began shortly after Ino’s departure.  It was lucky, too: it kept Sakura’s eyes off the clock.  However, all too soon, she heard a bang from the kitchen.  

“Aw, shit!”  There was no mistaking the sound of Naruto’s loud voice ringing from the kitchen.  Sakura cringed in embarrassment.  An old woman sitting at the counter seemed vaguely offended for a moment, but then burst into raucous laughter.  Sakura slowly inched towards the door, keeping her eyes on the crazy elder, before kicking the door behind her open and whipping around.  She burst into the kitchen, eyes blazing with fury as she stared down the loudmouth.

“Oh, uh, hey Sakura-chan,” Naruto desperately tried to keep his voice casual from where he lay on the floor, which, like his face, seemed to be covered in flour.  

“You idiot,” Sakura sighed in an almost bored tone.  Naruto buried his face in the mound of flour nearest to him.  “No, get up, wipe off your face, and cover the front.  I’ve got this.”

“But Sakura-” He cast a haphazard look around the kitchen.  It almost looked like a winter wonderland had found its way smack dab into the middle of June.  The exploded flour bag lay forgotten on the counter.  

“I don’t trust you to clean it,” Sakura stated flatly, effectively cutting him off.  “Go make yourself presentable and try not to deafen anyone.”

Defeated, Naruto shuffled to the sink, shaking some of the flour out of his hair as he walked.  He quickly jogged to the back door, whipping off his apron as fast as he could manage and shaking it out.  He threw it back on and hurried back inside, nearly slipping as his frayed nerves carried him around Sakura’s scrutinizing gaze.

“Apron’s backwards,” she intoned boredly as he stumbled past.  He felt the blood rush to his face.  Heaving a huge sigh, he fumbled with the knot at the small of his back until…

“Stop.”  A soft breeze from the open back door blew the scent of strawberry towards him, and small hands slapped his clumsy ones aside.  

Naruto felt incredibly lucky that his back was to her: his face was ready to be set aflame.  

Even though her words were sharp, Sakura’s touch was soft as she lifted the apron over his ears.  He carefully thought of _literally anything but_ what those hands might feel like on his bare skin.  She flipped the apron around and threw it back over his head, and he felt her move further from him.  

“I’m sorry Sakura,” he sounded horribly embarrassing and resisted the urge to hide beneath his righted apron.  

“It’s okay,” she said, but the exhausted voice from earlier had returned.  At that moment, they both caught the tinkling of the front’s bell.  “Just go cover the front, okay?”  Naruto nodded, biting back more apologies.  How did he manage to completely screw up everything within five feet of him when she was around?  It was just pitiful.  

Inwardly groaning, he moved towards the counter.  He’d only worked up front a few times; usually his baking proved more valuable than his skill with mixing drinks...especially when you considered his ineptitude for math.  He eyed the cash register with distrust.  Kami, there’d be math, wouldn’t there?!  

 _Maybe everyone will pay with exact change_ , he thought helplessly to himself.  However, after locking eyes with the customer waiting for him, he highly doubted it.

The guy had jet black hair sticking in just plain _weird_ directions and a deeply offended (or maybe disgusted?) expression.  His eyes seemed just as dark as his hair, rimmed by the slightest of shadows underneath them.  

Naruto guessed that he was not a morning person.  Nonetheless, he tried to manage some hopeful cheer.

“Hey there, what can I get for you today?”  He swore he heard Sakura sighing in the kitchen.  Several patrons scattered around the seating area looked up in vague amusement before turning back to their coffee.

Right.  Volume.

Morning Man did not appear to find Naruto as endearing as the rest of the cafe, glaring at him like he’d killed everything he’d ever loved.  Maybe it was because he didn’t have any coffee to turn back to.

“Espresso.  Black.”  His voice sounded just as dead as his face appeared.  

“Riiiiight.  I’m not sure why I asked, really,” Naruto joked, letting out a nervous laugh.  Morning Man did not join in.  “...is that for here or to go?” His voice sounded like it was shrinking into itself.  At the very least, he hoped he was finally quiet enough for Sakura.

Morning Man seemed stumped at this decision.  Naruto watched as the guy glared at the messenger bag hanging at his side, and then slowly turned his dead gaze unto Naruto.  

If Sasuke was being honest, the Senju cafe was one of the only decent ones in Kohona.  Usually, he stayed there a bit before heading off to the office, pulling out his laptop and working on whatever Itachi had him slaving away at this week.  (Deciding to do an internship for his older brother was possibly the worst decision of his young life).

But _usually_ this loser wasn’t the one serving.  It was some pink haired chick; she’d been here every time he’d come in.  And _she_ didn’t give him a migraine when all he wanted was a coffee.  Was it even worth staying here when he’d get nothing done, what with this asshole shouting everyone’s order?

“No, please, take your time,” Naruto was muttering under his breath, pointedly looking everywhere but back at the pair of dark eyes staring him down.  

“What was that?” Sasuke gritted out between closed teeth.  Naruto jumped back in surprise, causing Sasuke to wonder how long the quiet diatribe had been taking place right under his nose.  

“Eh, nothing, nothing,” the blond was saying, waving his hands rapidly.  “So.  Can I have a name for the order?”

“Sasuke,” he stated, disliking the new barista more by the second.  He’d never even let him answer the first question.  

Naruto resigned himself to the fact that he was going to mess that name up horribly when it came time to write it on a coffee cup.  He also acknowledged that it’d be only one part ineptitude, two parts barista’s malice.  What was this guy’s deal, anyways?

He rang up Sasuke’s order and miraculously got the change right.  It only figured that Sakura was not there to see him being mildly successful.  

“Your order will be ready in a sec,” Naruto said in a hinting tone.  Sasuke did not move away from the cash register.  Luckily, there was no one behind him yet, so it wasn’t like he was holding up traffic.  Unluckily, there was no one behind him yet, so Naruto couldn’t exactly force him to go sit on the sofas...or anywhere where he couldn’t watch Naruto with those evil dead eyes of his.  

Several moments passed in tense silence.

For his part, Sasuke was unimpressed with the slow service.  Usually, the pink haired girl whipped out an espresso for him in seconds.  It was almost like she’s known his order before he uttered it aloud.  In fact-

Before he could fully form the thought, the girl herself had come barreling out of the kitchen.  Flour was smudged on her cheek and a frustrated air seemed to be radiating off her.  She froze in her tracks when she caught his gaze directly on her.  The blond bounded up towards her happily.  

“Thank you Sakura-chan, I-”

“Kitchen,” she intoned blankly at him.  When he didn’t move, her voice dropped to a clipped, menacing tone.  “Now.”

Sasuke knew there was a reason he liked her.  

“But there’s a guy-”

“I can take care of it.”  Naruto gave this pause.  

“Uh, Sakura-chan, he already ordered.”  

The girl, Sakura, turned away from Naruto to meet his tired eyes.  Her own jade eyes seemed to soften a bit as a smirked played at her lips.  

“Let me guess.  Espresso, black?”  Sasuke silently nodded.  He supposed he had been coming here more often than he’d thought.

“He’s a regular,” Sakura was explaining to a stunned Naruto.  She crossed in front of the loudmouth to grab the espresso and poured it into the same navy mug she always gave Sasuke.  When he nodded his thanks, she beamed in response.  Without another word, he retired to his familiar arm chair in the corner.  

Naruto watched as Sakura continued to steal glances towards the psycho, and it all came crashing down on him.

“Oh my god, you have a thing for _that guy_??  Are you kidding me right now??”

It wasn’t until after he saw Sakura’s horrified expression that he remembered what she’d said about volume.  In the stunned silence that followed, he heard a mug being set down on a coaster.

He had the distinct feeling it was navy blue.


End file.
